3rd Africa Century International Writers Conference

On 7 November 2014, 6 top speakers and 22 South African Award Nominees celebrated  contributions made by Africans in the literature fraternity and the fight against colonisation.

The honorable Samia Yaba Nkrumah, executive director of the Kwame Nkrumah Pan African Centre and Chairperson of the Convention Peoples Party in Ghana delivered an inspiring talk about Africa's socio-cultural liberation. 

Considering that Dr Kwame Nkrumah created a blueprint for development in Africa, Dr Zagba Narth Oyortey, the programme director for the conference, advised that any individual that fails to love him/herself, will have limited success. Love of thyself also means love of thy people. It is thus important to make sure that when one embarks on a mission of writing about Africans, that there is no misrepresentation of the African identity. There are constant complaints about media broadcasting incorrect or fabricated facts. 

Morakabe Seakhoa, Managing Director of the Write Associates whose company organised this conference pleaded that, "We want you to write the scripts of our own development from an African perspective." Should you know anyone or organisation that would be interested in taking the Africa Century International Writers Conference and South African Literary Awards to the next level, kindly contact the Write Associates  for more information.

"People need to thoroughly understand racism as a concept in South Africa." Molaodi Wa Sekake, an audience member, commented. He said that currently there is a decolonised version of racism and the body plays a significant part in the enactment of this concept.

Some would wonder what relevance this has with music or IKS Consulting & Promotions. Whether you are in the music industry or no industry, these issues affect all human beings either directly or indirectly and to ignore them would be ignorant and surely to our detriment as a human race. In Dr Oyortey's words, "Our writers penned down the vision for liberation. Artists were at the forefront of that encouragement." Dr Kwame Nkrumah left no less than 15 books as a guideline for decolonisation. Dr Oyortey also added that by ignoring the blueprint created by Nkrumah, "We rob ourselves of reaping the benefits of such blueprints and policies." 

What cause are South African artists at the forefront of, nowadays? 

  

HAPPY WORLD TOILET DAY!

Today is a special day where some will celebrate World Toilet Day! If you are one of those privileged people who have access to adequate sanitation, do remember that there are people out there that are not enjoying the benefits of the human right to dignity.

There are communities that do not have access to toilets. They have long-drop toilets or are using bucket systems. It is unhygienic and can easily enable diseases to infest. With the video attached, we would like to encourage all human beings who are advantaged in this regard to appreciate what they have.

We would also like to encourage those capable of making a difference in the development of poor communities to continue doing so. We promise to do our part too.

What Do Usher, Van Morrison and James Brown Have in Common?

The fact that each of these renowned artists have worked with Uber-trombonist Fred Wesley. The distinguished jazz, blues and RnB musician who began his career playing for the legendary duo Ike and Tina Turner, is now poised to bring the Fred Wesley Quartet to the Wits Theatre on the 29th November, for a one-night only extravaganza.

The 380 people who are lucky enough to buy their tickets in time will be treated to the musical stylings of the man who spent 11 years as James Brown's primary composer and music director. The Fred Wesley Quartet includes Fred himself on trombone, Dwayne Dolphin on bass, Brian Cox on drums and Joel Johnson on guitar.

The National Arts Council of South Africa is pleased to be bringing over this veteran of the Count Basie Orchestra, whose star-studded list of collaborators includes Ray Charles, Pancho Sanchez, the SOS Band and Cameo. His work is so timeless that he has been sampled by such contemporary artists as Nas and Janet Jackson. 

With a career that spans more than 4 decades of working at the highest levels of the music scene, Johannesburg, prepare yourself for the South African debut of a musical icon and see for yourself what makes him one of the premier jazz aficionados in the world today.

BOOK NOW ON COMPUTICKET!

Contact Details

For event details, contact Lynne Pillay on lynnet@mweb.co.za or Ph: 021 674 9944